History of the Inter-Cooperative Council of Ann Arbor

Debs House was acquired and established by the ICC in 1967. Previously, this house has also been the site of two other Ann Arbor co-ops, Congress House and Lester House. Screenwriter and director Lawrence Kasdan lived at Debs Cooperative in the late 1960s, and his experiences at the co-op served as a basis for the 1983 film The Big Chill.

The house's namesake, Eugene Debs, was an American socialist, political activist, trade unionist, and one of the founding members of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW). One of the best known socialists living in America at the time, Debs was famously prosecuted by the administration of Woodrow Wilson for his opposition to World War I and ran for president of the United States on the Socialist Party ticket from his prison cell, receiving 3.4% of the vote. 

Due to its history and name, Debs is known within the ICC for the political radicalism of its members and a deep commitment to social justice.